Hull-extractor for cotton.



`w. s;.s1vnm. HULL EXTRACTOR FOR COTIN.

l ABPLlCA-TIQN. ELED MAY 2D. 191,6.

Patented Feb. 26,1918* 2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

His HTTElr-na W.. .3. SMITH.

v HuLLE-xTRAcmR Foa coToN. AFPLICATION FILED MAY 20, |916.

Patented Feb. 26,1918,

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

lfa

, Hi 5 TTDT ne 5 al ap WEIL tt S. SllllllTH, OF TJISHOMING, OKLAHOMA, ASSXGNOB, OIF ONE-EIGHTH TO C. B. BURBOWS ANZIO ONE-EIGHTH 'I0 GEORGE W. DUJDLEY, BOTH OF TISHOMIIINGO,

OKLAHOMA..

HULL-EXTRACTOR FOR COTTON.

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Speeication of Letters Patent.

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Application led may 20,1916. Serial No. 98,732. I

Cotton, of which the following is a speciiication. V f

My present invention relates to a machine for extracting the hulls from cotton, embodying an endless carrier for saws, and extracting and picking mechanism coperating with said saws, to separate the hulls from that cotton which has been caught up by the teeth of the'saws;

'lhe principal object of my invention is to provide an improved machine which will thoroughly separate the cotton from the hulls by subjecting the mass to the action of a plurality of sets of saws and pickers, whereby the separation is more e'ectively accomplished, with a minimum of waste.,

Other objects of my invention are to provide aI machine of the character described which is compact, and easily maintained in good repair; and, a machine embodying` parts which are adjustable so that it may be arranged to act upon the particular work at hand for edectively accomplishing the separation.

Further objects of my invention will appear in the following detailed description, taken in connection'with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which drawings:

Figure 1 is a view partly in velevation and partly in vertical section through a machine constructed according to my invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of said machine, on a reduced scale.

o Fig.. 3 is a view partly in plan and partly in horizontal section, certain elements having been removed to disclose details.

Fig. A is an enlarged elevation of an adjustable hanger for picker drums.

lig. 5 is a detail sectional view through a portion of a dexible carrier, a saw, and its mounting in connection with said carrier.

In the drawings, where similar characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views, A designates the suitable casing includin frame B and walls C; D an inlet to the caslng E an outlet for cotton from said casing; l?

. ing.

' belt 20 by ,the

A for the mass to be acted upon;

saw mechanism; G extracting mechanism; lil picking mechanism; and d an outlet for -waste product.

Referring first to the casing A, it may be built up of any suitable material and in the example shown, the frame B comprises a base 6, vertical members 7, and cross members 8 to which `the walls C are secured.y

rllhe inlet D may comprise a vertical shaft v9, at the 'upper portion of which a suitable hopper 10 is provided, the lower portion of shaft 9 leading to achute 11, which extends through the wall C of the casing A, with itsv end at the lower portion of said casrlFhe outlet E, in the example shown, includes the vertical shaft 12, leading from an arcuate shaft 13, the-upper wall 1A of which forms the to of the casing. rllhe shafts 12 and 13 maylloe supported by a suitable bracket 15 secured to the 'uprights 7.

Referring now to the saw mechanism l?, it

egress comprises two pulleys 16 and 17, the latter arranged above the former, said pulleys keyed to shafts 18 and 19 respectively; an endless carrier or belt 20 trained about the pulleys 16 and 17; and, a plurality of sets of saws 21, the saws 22 succeeding relation longitudinally yof the vbelt 20 and detachably secured thereto in any suitable manner. lt is preferred to form the saws 22 arcuate and they may be provided with a transverse perforation 23 to receive the stem 24 of a set screw 25, said set screw in threaded engagement witha bracket 26 secured to the belt 20 as by brad 27./ A second bracket 28 is disposed at the other side of saw 22, said bracket secured to the lbelt 20, as by brad 29, and provided with a of each set arranged in j perforation 30 receiving the end portion of j thestem 24. 'llhus by removing the set screw 25, a broken saw may be readily replaced, the new saw bein held rigid with extension o? stem 24 through its perforation 23. Assuming that the pulleys 16 and 17 are rotated in a direction indicated by the arrow, the teeth 31 of saws 22 are disposed extending in a direction clearly shown 1n Fig. 1, and cottonin hulls which is passed through inlet D is caught up by teeth 31 and carried in a vertical direction laterally of one of the runs of belt 20., Movement may be imparted to shaft 19 through pulleys 32 and 33, over which belt 34 is trained, the pulley 32 being keyed to shaft 19, while the pulley 33 is keyed to a shaft 35 supported by bearings 36! secured to uprights 7.

As to mechanism Gr, it is for the purpose of forcing the hulls away from sans1 teeth 31, and may comprise a plurallty of elongated supports 37, each 'support including an' elongated main body portion -38 extending longitudinally of and in close proximity to the run of belt 20 traveling upwardly from pulley 16 to pulley 17; and an arcuate portion 39 the end 40 of which is spaced a greater distance from belt 20 than at its juncture with main body portion 38. By this construction such cotton as is caught up by the saw teeth 31 is moved toward the crown of the arcuate saws 22, as they reach the ingress of shaft 13, and in -close proximity to which is provided a brush 42 revolubly mounted, as by shaft 43, and movable in the direction indicated by arrow. This brush serves to force the cotton from teeth 31 of the saws and dispose it in the outlet of the machine. This outlet may be connected with a suitable suction device (not shownin the drawings) to facilitate the removal of the cotton from the machine. A plurality of`arcuate yieldable arms are arranged 1n spaced relation on each support 37 laterally of the saws 22, the said arms 44, .beginnlng adjacent the start of the run of belt i 20 being relatively' shorter than the succeeding arms. In the example shown, these arms may be rigidly secured to supports 37, and springs 45 may be interposed between the arms and supports to normally dlspose them in the desired position. The supports 37, together with the arms 44 carried thereby, are arranged so th'at there 1s one support 37 to each side of the saws. Thus, as the cotton is fed intothe machine, and the teeth 31 ofthe saws engage the cotton, it,

together with the hulls are moved in a ver tical direction, the hulls engaging the arms 44 and being forced away from theJ -saws during operation of the machine. It 1s to be observed that the end portions of certain of the arms 44 being nearer the supports 37, they permit some of the hulls to be. carried upwardly without being entirely dlslodged from the cotton. If desired, the portions37 may also be yieldable to some extent and in the example shown, they are detachably secured to cross members 46 and 47 supported by the frame B.

As to mechanism H, it comprises a plurality of revoluble drums 48, mounted on shaft 49; teeth 50 on the perlpheries of these drums;vand, yieldable chutes 51, one chute below each drum 48. These drums are arranged one above another with their peripheries and in close proximlty to the saws 22, laterally of one of the runs of belt 20. The teeth 50 are preferably yieldable and in the example shown, recede from the peripheries of the drums in a direction counter to rotation. Eachchute may be formed of fabricated spring metal and include a main body portion 52, with stems 53 extending beneath the drums 48 and into close proximity to the saws 22. Certain of the chutes may be adjustably mounted, as by engaging a 'superposed guide 54 and beneath which is provided an idler 55 at each side of the machine, a sprocket 56 and rack 57 at each side of the machine, the racks 57 being secured to the under side of main body portion 52. The pinions 56 may be connected by a shaft 57 extending through the Wall C of the casing and to which shaft is secured a hand wheel 58. Thus, by rotating the hand wheel, the chute may be moved towardI or from the saws 22, as desired. These chutes lead to the outlet J for the hulls, spiral conveyers 59 being provided to move the hulls finding their way through the outlet, transversely of the machine to a suitable chute 60, clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

Movement of shaft 19 may be imparted to shaft 43 of brush 42 as by belt 61, andthe shafts 49 .of drums 48 may be rotated as by chains 62 trained about sprockets 63 and 64, on shaft 19 and 49 respectively, the movement of one shaft,49 being imparted to the other shafts of the drums as by chains 65 to 68, more clearly shown in Fig. 2, trained about sprockets 69 so that all of the drums rotate in a uniform direction, as indicated by arrows in Fig. 1. The spiral conveyers 59 may also be rotated by means of chains and sprockets, in the example shown, a chain 7 0 being trained about sprockets 71 and 72, the former on shaft 18, and the latter rigid with the lowermost conveyer 59. Movement may be imparted to the uppermost conveyer as through chain 73 trained about sprockets 74 and 75 rigid with the two conveyers.

I prefer to adjustably mount the drums 48, and in the example shown, the shaft 49 of each drum may be pendantly supported by hangers 76, shown in detail, in Fig. 4. Each shaft 49 extendsthrough an arcuate opening 77 in the walls of the casing A, the end portions of the shaft being received by bearings 78 adjustable in a frame 79, said frame 7 9 being pivoted to the wall of the casing as at 80 and provided with an arcuate slot 81 through which extends a bolt 82 having screwthreaded engagement with walls C. Thus, by releasing bolt 82, the drum 48 may .be swung toward or [from the saws 22, and

'mantas The operation of the machine is as follows:

rlhe mass of cotton in hulls is introduced into the machine through inlet D, whereupon it engages the lowermost drum '18, the teeth ofwhich drum move the mass toward uhe lowermost saws of the sets 21 adjacent the lower portion of the upwardly moving run of belt 20. rllhe teeth 31 of said saws engaging the cotton carry theA mass upwardly, the pickin mechanism serving to dislodge the hulls from the cotton. `As the hulls engage arms 44, they are forced from the teeth of the saws;- drums being yieldable, they serve to crush the empty hulls which find thelr way to chute 51 and ultimately to the egress of outlet J. Such hulls as contain cotton and which are forced from engagement with the saws by arms 14, are pressed toward the caw teeth by the next succeeding drum and so on hulls., lt is to be observed that the hulls are acted upon in succeeding relation as they travel toward the upper portion of the machine. As the saws approach the arcuate portions 39 of the supports 37, the cotton 1s forced toward the brush A2, which throws the cotton into outlet E.

Changes in details may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention; but,

l claim:

1. A hull extractor for cotton comprising in combination, an endless carrier, a plurality of sets of saws arranged longitudinally of said carrier, means for forcing the hulls from close proximity to the teeth of said saws, and pickers for forcing the hulls containing cotton toward said saws.

2. A hull extractor for cotton comprising in combination, a plurality of sets of saws, each set comprising a plurality of saws arranged in succeeding relation, said sets of saws bodily movable in parallel planes, means for forcing the hulls from close proximity to the teeth of said saws, and pickers for forcing the hulls containing cotton toward said saws.

3. A hull extractor for cotton comprising in combination,` a plurality of sets of saws, each set comprising a plurality of arcuate saws arranged in succeeding relation, said sets of saws bodily movable in parallel pla-nes, means for forcing the hulls from close proximity to the teeth of said saws, and pickers for forcing the hulls containing cotton toward said saws.

4,. A hull extractor for cotton comprising in combination, 4two pulleys arranged in spaced relation one above the other, a belt around said pulleys, a plurality of sets of saws arranged longitudinally of said belt, means for forcing the hulls from close proximity to the teeth of said saws, andl pickers rlhe teeth 50 of the until the cotton is separated from the forforcingthe hulls containing cotton'toward said saws.

5. A hull extractonfor cotton comprising .rmi

in combination, two pulleys arranged in spaced relation one above the other, a belt around said pulleys, a plurality of sets of arcuate saws arranged longitudinally of said belt, means for forcing the hulls from close proximity to the teeth of said1 saws,'and pickers for forcing the hulls containing cotton toward said saws.

6. A hull extractor for cotton comprising `in combination, two pulleysA arranged in spaced relation, a belt about said pulleys, a plurality of sets of saws, means for detachably securing the saws of said sets to said belt longitudinally thereof, means for forcing the hulls' from close proximity to the teeth of said saws, and pickers for forcing the hulls containing cotton toward said saws.

v 7. In a hull extractor for cotton, the com-I bination of two pulleys arrangedvin spaced relation, a belt about said pulleys, a set of saws arranged lon tudinally of and carried by said belt, two e ongated supports, one to each side of said saws, each support including a `main body portion extendinglongitudinally of and in close proximity to a run of said belt, and an arcuate portion about the curved portion of said belt at one of said pulleys, said arcuate portion of said support having its end portion spaced a greater distance from said belt than at its juncture with said Inain body portion, and means carried by said support extending laterally of said jaws to force the'hulls away from the teeth thereof. y

8. lin a hull extractor Yfor cotton, the combination of two pulleys arranged in spaced relation, a belt about said pulleys arranged in spaced relation, a set of sawsl arranged longitudinally of and carried by said belt, two elongated supports, one to each side of said saws, each support including a main body portion extending longitudinally of and in close proximity to a run of said belt, and an arcuate portion about thecurved portion of said belt at one of the pulleys, said arcuate portion of said support having its end portion spaced a greater distance from said belt than at its juncture with said main body portion, and a plurality of arcuate arms in spaced relation carried by said supports and extending laterally of said saws.

9. In a hull extractor for cotton, the combination of two pulleys arranged in spaced relation, a belt about said pulleys, a set of saws arranged longitudinally of and carried by said belt, two elongated supports, one to each side of said saws, each support including a main body portion extending longitudinally of and in close proximity to a run of said belt, and an arcuate portion about the curved portion of said support having its end ortion spaced a greater distance from said elt than at its juncture with said main body portion, and a plurality of yieldable arcuate arms in spaced relation carried by said supports and extending laterally 'of said saws, the said arms beginning adjacent.

the start of the run of said belt being rela- Vtivelv shorter than the succeeding arms.

in combination, saws, a plurality of revoluble drums arranged one above another with their peripheries facing and in close prox- Y imity to said saws, said drums bodily movable toward and from said saws, teeth on said drums, and yieldable chutes below said drums inclined downwardly from said saws.

12. A hull extractor for cotton comprising in combination, saws, a plurality of revoluble drums arranged one above the other with their peripheries facing and in close proximity to said saws, teeth on said drums, and yieldable chutes below said drums inclined downwardly from said saws, and adjustable toward or from theiatter.

13. A hull extractor for cotton comprising in combination, saws, a plurality cf revoluble drums arranged one above another with their peripheries facing and in close proximity to said saws, said drums bodily movable toward and from said saws, teeth on said drums, and yieldable chutes below said drums inclined downwardly from said saws,

and adjustable toward or from the latter.

14. In a hull extractor for cotton, the combination of two pulleys arranged in spaced relation, a belt about said pulleys, a set of saws arranged longitudinallv of and carried by said belt, and two elongated supports, one to each side of said saws, said supports each including a main body portion extending longitudinally of and in close proximity to a run of said belt, and an arcuate portion about the curved portion of said belt at one of said pulleys, said arcuate portion of said support having its end portion spaced a greater distance from said belt than at itsjuncture with said main body portion.

15. In a hull extractor for cottonz the combination of two pulleys arranged 1n spaced relation, a belt about said pulleys, a set of saws arranged longitudinally of and carried by said belt, two elongated supports, one at each side of said saws, each support including a main body portion extending longitudinally of and in close proximity to a run of said belt, and an arcuate portion about said curved portion of said belt at one end of said pulleys, said arcuate portion of said support having its end portion spaced a A greater distance from said belt than at its juncture with said main body portion, and a brush adjacent the said arcuate portion of said supports acting upon said saws.

WILLIAM s. SMITH. 

